Sunday, March 29, 2009

I used to think that I had a small grasp on photography but I realized that I pretty much know the bare minimum. Since I found I Heart Faces, I have been on that site everyday trying to soak in all that it has to offer. There is so much to learn about the art. Not only do you have to just have an eye for it but you have to know how to get the most out of your camera and how to use it - aperture, shutter speed, ISO, lighting, exposure, etc. It can be quite confusing. I have taken a few classes so I know some but I always have to refresh my memory. There is a lot to comprehend and retain. Sometimes my brain doesn't work as well as I want it too in order to grasp it all! Then after all that, you have to know how to edit a photo because 9 times out of 10, you don't get that perfect photo right out of your camera. Well, at least I never do. So comes editing- I don't really know squat about that either. I have Photoshop 7.0 that a friend gave me a long time ago. I had it for a year or so before I ever even delved into trying it out. It still totally confuses me! I usually start with a photo and then apply an action that I got off the internet which is some type of color pop or something and then adjust the hue, contrast and such until I get something that I find acceptable. There are a lot of free actions that you can get off the internet. One place I like is http://coffeeteaphotography.blogspot.com/. I use a lot of those actions but you can find them anywhere. Now since going to I Heart Faces I have discovered Picnik. I think it is a great editing tool that anyone can use. I don't use the premium features but I know you can do even more with it if you did but for a free program, it's great!

So, with all that being said, I am not the greatest one to teach someone how to edit something. I Heart Faces does what they call Fix IT Fridays. Someone enters a picture to be edited by the pros and they tell everyone how they did their editing. Then anyone can grab that picture and try things out themselves so I thought I would give it a whirl. I used Photoshop 7.0 mainly for this. I used Picnik just to add a drop shadow effect- no reason- just was messing around. I could have done it in photoshop but I didn't. I tried to whiten her teeth a bit with Picnik but it didn't really seem to work. As far a Photoshop went- I used a color pop action (can't remember which one) and then adjusted the levels and hue a bit and saturation- that is the 1st photo and with the second photo I applied another action to my edited photo. The action I used was Coffee SHop Honey Retro. It burned the edges and gave it a glowing look.

This little girl is so cute! Thanks to the photographer who let us all play with the picture. It was a lot of fun!!! Happy clicking!First picture is original

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Here is my entry for We Picture This- Black and White entry. I love this shot of Maddyn. She looks so devilish! Check out the site if you like photography. It's another great one that I found!
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Monday, March 23, 2009

As some of you know, I like to take pictures. Lots of them! I got interested in photography after RJ was born. I think he and Maddyn must be the most photographed kids ever- next to the celebrities children. LOL

I found a photography blog called I HEART FACES where anyone can enter contests, find answers to just about any photography question, join their social network, and meet other photographers- beginners to professional. Go check them out! it's a great site!This is my first entry into one of their weekly contests. The theme this week is No Flash. I took that picture of Maddyn in her bedroom as she was standing by her window. it was an overcast day as you can see from the rain on the window. Not much light was coming in but I thought it looked nice.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Spring is almost here! That means RJ is almost 6 years old! WOW! I can't believe he is that old! When did my baby grow up? He is still a little man so I will hang on to that for as long as possible but soon I won't be able to say that either. He is doing great in kindergarten and is well liked by his teachers and peers. We are going to start him in Tae Kwon Do next month and he is excited about that. I think it will be good for him. He will continue Letchworth Splash as well but we may cut down the amount of days per week he goes. Too many nights out can make for more stress than it is worth.

Maddyn is getting bigger way too fast as well. She is now 9 months old and is crawling and pulling herself up to stand and cruising around the rooms. She is getting into soooo many things. We need to constantly keep an eye on her. She is such a joy and is loved by all of us. She is scared of Papa Bumblebee lately for some reason. Cries her eyes out when she sees him. Poor Papa!

Maddyn has had pink eye for a week or so but that is getting better. Pretty much gone now. RJ and Mark have had colds but nothing too bad. I have remained healthy through it all. I might regret saying that as things tend to come back and bite you in the butt once you get that kind of thing out of your mouth.

In April, we plan on going to Great Wolf Lodge for a night during Easter break before RJ goes to MI. GWL is an indoor water park in Canada. I am excited! RJ will have a blast!!! I am hoping Maddyn will like it too! I had to get myself a new bathing suit (GAG!) online that costs a ton of money because of my huge TATAS that I have been "blessed" with. I can't wait to get the girls REDUCED. That will be an interesting thing to blog about! Hopefully that will happen next Fall.

I am going to post a few pictures of my rugrats. You can all see how big they have gotten since my last post. Have a great rest of the week!